Climate in Ireland, climate and plant growth, agricultural policy Fruits crops, protected crops, horticultural pests, weeds and diseases, integrated crop production. Landscape management. Fertilisers and manures; tillage machinery; cultivation, management and harvesting of arable crops and root crops; farm forestry; energy crops; grassland establishment and management; agriculture and the environment.

The student will be able to describe the climate of Ireland and the effect of climate on agricultural practices. The student will illustrate at least four examples of production scheduling for various horticultural crops. The student will be able to discuss the effects of rootstocks, and propose suitable rootstock types for different situations. The student will be able to select fruit varieties based on harvest period and suitability for given climatic situations, as well as suitability for various given functions. The student will be able to employ their knowledge of cross-pollination to propose combinations of apple varieties that would be either suitable or unsuitable for cross-pollinating each-other, and will be able to propose how a model for this would be applied to other crop species. The student will be able to evaluate the effects of different pruning options on the likely growth of a tree (or other plant), and will be able to relate this back to the hormone systems and physiology of such a tree. The student will be able to outline the physiological phases in the growth of strawberries, and apply this knowledge to design a system that would allow for the production of strawberries for 6 months annually. The student will be able to discuss the supplementation of CO2 in greenhouse crops, and will justify the need for closed-system greenhouses for production of out-of-season produce. The student will be able to analyse and critique a landscape design plan.

The student will be able to: Acknowledge the importance of scientific principles on crop and grassland science Acknowledge the contribution of agriculture to the rural economy and the environment

The student will be able to: Conduct an exercise using meteorological data (e.g. degree day accumulation model). Examine and calibrate the functioning of an automated weather station. Use a key to identify commonly occuring weeds. Identify common horticultural pests and diseases.